Coprolites

     Coprolites are preserved feces (poop). Archaeologists get very excited when they find coprolites at sites. Coprolites can offer a close look into the life of a single person. Preserved waste can reveal details about the person’s diet and diseases, like if they ate certain foods or had parasites. Sometimes, archaeologists can even get DNA from coprolites. The ones at Bayou Jasmine were from the peat stratum, when the site was a fishing camp. The coprolites had a large number of tiny fish head bones. The coprolites, like all the artifacts from Bayou Jasmine, are preserved and available for future analysis when new techniques may provide more information.

Click on the image to the left for a closer look.